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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26314720">the weight of steps that shake the ground</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/birdlord5000/pseuds/birdlord5000'>birdlord5000</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Friends at the Table (Podcast)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, also slight gur/valence, background broun/valence, pzn 30 ending rewrite, spoilers through Partizan 30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:07:20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,969</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26314720</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/birdlord5000/pseuds/birdlord5000</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In a critical moment, the divine that watches over the cemetery intervenes</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>the weight of steps that shake the ground</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Valence lifted their gun and the world held its breath. Chrysanth in front of them, a smile on her face and a pistol pointed down at the prone form of Sovereign Immunity. Thisbe behind them with Mow, ready to move at any moment. The crowd of mourners scattering like insects from the chaos.</p>
<p>Then the world let out its breath and stood.</p>
<p>The only thing that Valence could think as the projections warped and rippled like silk, was that it was hard to tell how large the thing was when it was kneeling down. When it unfolded itself into its full height, it was twice as tall as the buildings around it, sharp, angular shoulders framing a black monolith of a head. </p>
<p>And though it had no mouth, Order spoke.</p>
<p>“<em>Enough </em> ,” it said in a voice like a slab of granite. It took a step forward, slow and deliberate. The ground shook with every move it made. “<em>This is a place of rest, and you are causing chaos.” </em></p>
<p>Quicker than anyone could squeeze a trigger, Order reached down, its hand dividing the space between Valence and Chrysanth. Valence stumbled back. The gun fell from their hand, the little pistol that Millie had taught them to use. “You’ll get used to it,” she had said, but they hadn’t, not enough to pull the trigger on the woman who had strung their friend’s body up like a puppet and made him preach against the organization they had formed. They reached their gaseous self out to the electric hum of Perennial in the air, pushing through the cracks in their body, trying to stop the events that were already in motion. But even Perennial could not still the motion of the hand as it closed around them and lifted them into the air.</p>
<p>Valence tried their best to wiggle their way to freedom, but Order’s grip was iron. It raised them up to its chest, right to where its heart might be if it were human. A panel slid open to reveal a pitch-black corridor, and the hand tossed them inside. Before they could regain their footing, the door slammed shut behind them.</p>
<p>“Order!” Valence called out. The sound bounced and echoed down the hall, and silence reached back. They tried again, this time projecting their thoughts as far as they could into the bolts and wires of the machine. “<em>Order! Answer me! Let me go!” </em></p>
<p>There was no answer.</p>
<p>They slammed a fist into the door, but it yielded nothing but the sound of metal on metal and feedback from their sensors saying that if they did that again, they might damage something. With their entrance barred, Valence took a hesitant step forward, deeper into the Divine. </p>
<p>There were tiny lights embedded in the sides of the walkway, just barely illuminating the way. As they approached one, it flickered to life and projected an image onto the wall above it, a looping video of Order striking down another mech in a vast green meadow, the grass around the two machines turning black from the heat of the impact. They took a step forward and another video sprang up on the wall opposite-- Order in the pouring rain, using its enormous hands to dam a river while ant-sized people fled to safety. Every step brought a new vision. Order destroying an entire fleet of ships in seconds. Order laying its enormous body down to make a wall between two armies. Order and a familiar black ship frozen in time as their two pilots reached out for a gleaming orb that hovered between them. Valence barely even noticed when the hallway ended and rose into a steep set of stairs. They climbed into darkness and time seemed to stretch, each step up loud and deliberate. When they finally reached the cockpit, it was strange just to be able to see again. Every surface, from the controls to the pilot’s seat, was covered in a fine layer of dust, but the displays shone bright, looking out at the clear sky above Nooncrown. </p>
<p>“<em>Alien,” </em> Order said. From within its halls, Order’s voice was something that was felt more than heard. “<em>I am very old. I have seen many things, but have only heard of people such as you. What brought you to this place?”  </em></p>
<p>"My name is Valence," they said. They looked around, trying to see if there was any other exit. The air in this place was stale and stifling. “I am here to retrieve parts of my god’s body, something which your principality took for its own use." </p>
<p>"<em>So you are here to oppose Chrysanth Kesh," </em> Order said, the tone of its voice unchanging. "<em>You are with that group known as Millennium Break, are you not?” </em></p>
<p>“I am.”</p>
<p>“<em>Such a little thing when one looks at the scope of Divinity. A rebel group on a little moon at the edge of an empire. But I can feel the weight of your steps. You shake the very ground that you walk on.” </em></p>
<p>Valence cocked their head. “I’m not sure if I’m supposed to take that as a compliment.”</p>
<p>“<em>Take it as you will, it is the truth. </em>” The picture on the screen changed to a view of the city below. The streets were empty of people. In the cemetery, the Knights of Order circled their Divine, their arms raised. At Order’s feet, both Chrysanth and Thisbe stood motionless.</p>
<p>“<em>Thisbe!” </em> Valence tried to reach their mind out to their friend, hoping that the distance wasn’t too far, or that there wasn’t some part of Order that would suppress their telepathy. There was a moment of silence, then a small acknowledging beep. “<em>Thisbe, grab Sovereign Immunity, take what you can, and get out of here. I’m going to try to break out, but there’s no point in waiting for me. If I don’t make it back, just… just tell Broun that I’m sorry, okay?” </em></p>
<p>
  <em> “Understood.” </em>
</p>
<p>The pale little dot on the screen that was Thisbe darted forward. She scooped up the motionless body of Sovereign Immunity and ran back to Mow. Valence watched them leave, watched Chrysanth and her men gather together and move in the same direction. They could only hope that Thisbe was fast enough to lose them.</p>
<p>The screen went black. The only light in the room came from the buttons and switches on the control panel. </p>
<p><em> “I do not intend to keep you here </em> .” It was hard for Valence to tell if Order was speaking out loud, or in their head; its voice had such a weight to it that it felt like every word was being drilled into their mind. “<em>But before I release you, you must answer some questions. I have been looking for someone, and you seem like a viable candidate.” </em></p>
<p>Valence frowned. “What kind of questions?”</p>
<p>“<em>Sit, then I will tell you </em>.”</p>
<p>The only option was the pilot’s chair. They looked it over twice, three times, but there didn’t seem to be any traps, just a layer of dust. Tentatively, they gathered their robes up and sat down.</p>
<p>The information hit them from every angle, question upon question streaming in without stop in telepathic picture.</p>
<p>
  <em> You learn some information that might help your side in an upcoming battle, but which might also prove to be false-- what do you do? If your house was on fire and you could only grab one thing as you fled, what would it be? Does seniority or raw skill matter more when promoting someone? What is the average time it takes a Kesh warship to travel from Partizan  to the nearest gate? Hot or cold? In the event of an earthquake, which citizens should be prioritized during the recovery process? You encounter a follower of the cult of Perennial among your ranks-- what do you do? </em>
</p>
<p>It was the word Perennial that helped Valence raise their head above the flood of information that lapped at them from all sides. It was easy to answer the questions as they came, like swatting at flies buzzing around their head while more came to take their place. Perennial’s name had an electric little tug to it, like she was there telling them to stay focused and remember why they were there in the first place. For the Exemplar. For Gur. For a way to turn the Principality away from their home.</p>
<p>With each question answered, they tried to move their body. “Just before dawn.” A twitch of the ear. “37.” A shifting knee beneath their robe. “It depends on the weather conditions.” The slow extension of an arm. They could feel the weighty static around them, waves of nanites triggering a sense they hadn’t used since they left home. They just had to wait for the right moment.</p>
<p>
  <em> “Would you go beyond the gate into Caelestia Nullius if it would benefit the Principality?” </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em> NO </em>
</p>
<p>Valence rose with enough force that they nearly toppled forward. They sprinted back the way they had entered, down the flickering hallway with all its ghosts, to the steel slab of the door. </p>
<p>“<em>It’s a shame,” </em> Order said above them, below them, directly into their ear, “<em>it’s been a very long time since I met someone who truly wished for peace. It made me nostalgic.” </em></p>
<p>Valence reached out beyond their body, their smoke mixing with the particles of Perennial and seeping into the cracks in Order’s walls. Every machine had some kind of off switch, and if they couldn’t find it, then they would at least wreak some havoc while they were there. </p>
<p>“<em>So you are more than just a rebel, then? You side with the adversary herself?” </em></p>
<p>With the little gas that was left in their metal body, Valence smiled. “She is not my god, but I’m not going to say no to her help.”</p>
<p>They raised their hand, and Order’s power grid surged and crashed in echoing silence.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It took Valence longer than they would have liked before they found the ladder leading down to a manual hatch in Order’s leg. The body of the divine was dark, and the power they had borrowed from Perennial had fused together half of the wires in their torso and rendered their left arm useless. The whole time the machine was silent, save for the clunk of their boots across the walkway as they ran. The sooner they got away, the less likely it would be that they would be caught by Order’s waking. When they finally shoved the door open with their shoulder, the evening light was blinding even to their synthetic eyes. The cemetery was quiet. </p>
<p>Quiet, but not empty. Next to one of the larger mausoleums, a knot of priests had their heads together in discussion. Every so often one of them would look up at Order with a face full of worry. Valence waited until none of them seemed to be looking in their direction, then sprinted as fast as they could away from the body of the divine. It took until they were nearly at the cemetery gate for a shout to rise up behind them. They took a quick left, vaulted over the wall, and zig-zagged their way through the empty streets of Nooncrown.</p>
<p>In the shade of a balcony at the edge of the city, they finally stopped, braced their hands against the wall, and took a metaphorical breath. A quick cast of their mind around showed no sign of Broun’s rusty red, the thorny wavelength that had become the most familiar thing to them since they had left their home. But there was something else on their periphery, a stark whiteness sitting less than a mile outside of Goldcrest.</p>
<p><em>“Thisbe?” </em> they called out.</p>
<p> There was a long pause, then a beep of acknowledgement. </p>
<p> “<em>This is operant Valence requesting pickup. Let’s get out of here.” </em></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>*crawls out of my writer's block hole, kicking a half-written wip chapter behind me* hey guys, i don't think valence should have died<br/>thanks to Ellie and Beau for helping me edit this!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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